Students & Families
- Attendance Exception
- Attendance Tips
- Birthday Treat Policy
- First View Tracking App Information
- Food Service & Lunch Menus
- Inclement Weather
- Infinite Campus Parent Tutorials
- New Volunteers
- SAT Suite Consent
- School Hour 2023-2024
- School Supply Lists
- School-Related Fundraisers
- Student Handbooks
- Summer Reading Lists
- Transportation Change Request
- Unit 5 Music Parents
- Unit 5 Student and Family Support
- McKinney-Vento Homeless Information
- Athletic Websites
- Safe Return to School
Attendance Exception
ATTENDANCE EXCEPTION PROCEDURES
Individual school boundaries have been established for all Unit 5 Schools based on the residence of the parent or guardian. The following procedure has been established to address the issues of attending a school other than the one assigned.
For K-8 students, exceptions will be granted based on the enrollment numbers at the requested and the assigned schools.
For High School (9-12) students, exceptions will be granted only for documented health issues. In order for a student attending high school on an attendance exception basis to participate in any Illinois High School Association (IHSA) sponsored activities, the student must be declared eligible by that organization.
Receiving an attendance exception is a privilege, not a right. It is an expectation that children have regular attendance at school and maintain appropriate behavior. Should either of these become an issue, attendance exceptions may be revoked and students may be returned to their home school.
Standard Procedure and Request Form
ATTENDANCE EXCEPTION PROCEDURES
ALL REQUESTS FOR THE 2024-2025 SCHOOL YEAR MUST BE RECEIVED BY 6/30/2024. NO REQUESTS WILL BE ACCEPTED AFTER THIS DATE.
Attendance Tips
Every Student Matters and Every Day Counts
This year, Unit 5 will be focusing on reducing chronic absenteeism of students. Chronic absenteeism is when a student has been absent for any reason (excused or unexcused) for 10 percent or more of the school year.
Here are some tips for parents to encourage their students:
PRESCHOOL ATTENDANCE TIPS (SPANISH)
Birthday Treat Policy
Unit 5 believes that birthdays are special for children. As a school district, in order to promote a healthy school environment, birthday recognitions cannot include food items. The decision will be left up to each school as to how they would like to recognize a student’s birthday, but it cannot include food items.”
First View Tracking App Information
Food Service & Lunch Menus
Inclement Weather
Unit 5 Winter Weather Procedure
Any decision to close schools or delay the start of a school day due to weather conditions will be made after careful consideration of the following factors:
1. Road conditions, especially in rural areas of the district;
2. Precipitation (snow, sleet, freezing rain);
3. Temperature;
4. Wind chill; and
5. Predicted changes in the weather conditions.
Student and staff safety is the ultimate factor when deciding if school should be cancelled. The decision-making process begins just after midnight with monitoring of the forecast, calls to law enforcement for information on road conditions, and consultation with other area school districts. Also, district officials physically drive throughout McLean County in the early morning hours to inspect bus routes. Every attempt will be made to make the decision to close school by 5:30 a.m., at the latest.
As soon as a decision is made, the information will appear immediately on the Unit 5 Web site. That is the fastest way to learn about a school closure. It will also be featured through local media outlets, including radio and television. A message will be sent as soon as a decision is made. Please understand that SchoolMessenger places more than 15,000 calls and it may take up to an hour for these calls to be completed, therefore the Web site and other forms of media may be the quickest source of information.
E-Learning days can be used in lieu of emergency days. As a result of this, our students will likely be remote learning on a day that would have previously been considered a “snow day.” The number of e-learning days may not exceed the number of emergency days in the approved school calendar, which is five. As always, we will notify families as soon as possible in the event of inclement weather. Here is a link to information.
Infinite Campus Parent Tutorials
New Volunteers
SAT Suite Consent
School Hour 2023-2024
School Supply Lists
School-Related Fundraisers
Student Handbooks
Summer Reading Lists
Transportation Change Request
Unit 5 Music Parents
Unit 5 Student and Family Support
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UNIT 5 STUDENT & FAMILY SUPPORT
Unit 5 recognizes that in some cases, students and families may need additional support provided outside of the classroom. If you have concerns or needs, please contact the school office at your student's school. The staff will connect you to the appropriate supports.
You can also contact community partner PATH, providing access to help.
McKinney-Vento Homeless Information
McKinney-Vento Information
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The McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act ensures the educational rights and protection of homeless children and youth, so that they may enroll in school, attend regularly, and be successful. Unit 5 is committed to supporting all of our students and ensuring that every student has access to the full range of educational experiences and resources that our district is proud to provide. Please review Unit 5's District Policy on homelessness.
Unit 5 recognizes that some students and families may need additional support provided outside of the classroom. Here is a link to that info.
Here is a fact sheet with information regarding McKinney-Vento .
Athletic Websites
Unit 5 Schools Athletic Web Sites
Welcome to the Unit 5 Athletic Information Page. On this page you will find sports information about Unit 5 schools as well as information about the schools they compete with. Click on the school logo and you will go directly to the school website. Click on the Web Page and go directly to the schools' sports web page.
IESA and IHSA Websites Junior High Schools and High Schools
Chiddix Junior High School https://il.8to18.com/chiddix/home
Evans Junior High School https://il.8to18.com/evansjhs/home
Kingsley Junior High School https://il.8to18.com/kingsleyjhs/home
Parkside Junior High School https://il.8to18.com/parkside/home
Normal Community High School https://schools.snap.app/nchs
Normal West High School https://il.8to18.com/ncwhs/home
Activity Fees
The McLean County School Board has set the following fees for co-curricular activities for the 2023-2024 school year:$90 for each sport/activity Students qualifying for reduced fees/lunches pay $45.00 for each sport/activity. Students qualifying for free fees/lunches have all co-curricular fees waived. The following activities have the above fees assessed at the high school level:
Girls: cross-country, golf, swimming, tennis, volleyball, basketball, soccer, softball, track, dance
Boys: cross country, football, golf, soccer, basketball, swimming, wrestling, baseball, tennis, track
Girls & Boys: cheerleading, band
The following activities have the above fees assessed at the junior high school level:Girls: cross-country, volleyball, basketball, softball, track
Boys: cross country, basketball, wrestling, baseball, track
Student Accident Insurance Information https://www.1stagency.com//
Safe Return to School
Opening Plan for Families
2021-22 School Year
This plan is subject to change based upon changing guidance and/or mandates from IDPH/ISBE, local data/metrics, and information about new variants of the virus.
INTRODUCTION
Over the last year and a half the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted most aspects of life, including schools. This resulted in school closures, changes to school schedules, instruction, and changes to health and safety protocols. Unit 5 educators and staff provided a safe learning experience and environment for our students. We recognize that most students learn best when in person with their teachers, support staff, and peers.
In May, 2021, the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE), unanimously adopted a resolution supporting in person learning. Unit 5 will have most students in person five days a week, with regular school hours. Exceptions may be made for 1) Students who are not eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine and are under a quarantine order by a local public health department of the Illinois Department of Public Health, or 2) students who may be eligible pursuant to 105 ILCS 5/14-13.01.
On August 4, 2021 Governor Pritzker issued a mask mandate for schools today. The relevant section of his Executive Order is worded as follows: All public and nonpublic schools in Illinois serving pre-kindergarten through 12th grade students must follow joint guidance issued by ISBE and IDPH and take proactive measures to ensure the safety of students, staff, and visitors, including, but not limited to:
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Requiring the indoor use of face coverings by students, staff, and visitors who are over age two and able to medically tolerate a face covering, regardless of vaccination status, consistent with CDC guidance; and
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Implementing other layered prevention strategies (such as physical distancing, screening, testing, ventilation, handwashing and respiratory etiquette, advising individuals to stay home when sick and get tested, contact tracing in combination with appropriate quarantine and isolation, and cleaning and disinfection) to the greatest extent possible and taking into consideration factors such as community transmission, vaccination coverage, screening testing, and occurrence of outbreaks, consistent with CDC guidance.
Throughout the year, we will monitor building and district metrics, community transmission, new guidance/mandates from IDPH/ISBE, and new information regarding variants of the virus. This is subject to change based on changes in guidance and/or mandates from the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) or the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE).
I hope that the information provided in this document will help you better understand the mitigation measures, protocols, and plans Unit 5 has in place for the start of the 2021-22 school year. If you have any questions please reach out to your student’s building administrator. I am confident our students will have a great year of learning ahead of them.
With Unit 5 Pride,
Dr. Kristen Weikle
OVERVIEW
Early Learning |
Elementary |
Junior High |
High School |
|
School Hours |
7:45-10:15 11:45-2:15 |
7:45-2:30 |
8:45-3:45 |
8:30-3:30 |
Are masks required on the school bus/ ? |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Are masks required in the nurse’s office? |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Are masks required inside the school? |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
MITIGATION & PREVENTION
Unit 5 has a number of recommended mitigation measures in place. These measures in addition with mask use by students, staff, and visitors will help to keep our students and staff safe and in school.
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Encourage sick individuals to stay home and test
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Daily/nightly cleaning and disinfecting of school environments
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Ventilation and air quality
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Needlepoint bipolar ionization was installed in each school prior to the start of the 2021-22 school year. Ion generators are placed in/on our HVAC units. The ion technology kills pathogens at the source before they can infect healthy occupants.
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Teaching and reminding students of proper hand and respiratory hygiene
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Promoting vaccinations
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Testing of symptomatic individuals (voluntary)
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PCR testing is available at each school for symptomatic students in the school nurse office. Parents will need to sign a consent form, complete an online registration with Test Directly, and then a mid-nasal swab test will be performed.
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Voluntary weekly screenings are available using the U of I saliva based test, COVID SHIELD.
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Contact tracing
*Mitigations may be removed or reinstated based on building metrics, local metrics, data on new variants, changes in guidance from IDPH/ISBE, or other pertinent information.
METRICS/POSITIVE CASES
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Students/staff will be contacted individually if they are identified as a close contact.
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We will monitor McLean County covid metrics and Unit 5 school metrics. This information will be updated weekly on the Unit 5 Dashboard. The McLean County data will be taken from the IDPH site which is updated every Friday afternoon for the previous week. Unit 5 school data will include students and staff who are covid positive for that week and who are newly quarantined. Data will be reported each week following a Sunday-Saturday to align with the IDPH collection period.
IN-PERSON LEARNING
Self-Certification
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Parents/guardians must monitor DAILY that students are symptom/exposure-free BEFORE sending their child to school. (The daily app no longer needs to be completed.) Students should not be sent to school if they have any of the following symptoms:
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Fever of 100.0 degrees Fahrenheit or higher
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New onset of moderate to severe headache
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Muscle or body aches from unknown cause
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New loss of sense of taste or smell
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Fatigue from unknown cause
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New cough
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Shortness of breath
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Sore throat
Masks
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Masks will be required on buses and inside all schools except during lunch when eating
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Students who are medically unable to wear a mask must provide documentation from a physician. Students with disabilities who are unable to wear a mask or face shield should contact the special education admin for further guidance.
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Masks are optional when students are outside for recess and pe
Classroom Setup
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Seating charts will be used.
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Students will be socially distanced to the best of our ability.
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Students may sit at tables or desks arranged in groups/pods. Students will be kept in the same cohort/groups for a week at a time to help with contact tracing
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Sharing of materials is permitted. Hand washing or hand sanitizer will be used after sharing items
Lunchroom/Water Fountains
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All students will wash hands, and/or be reminded to wash hands, prior to entering the cafeteria.
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Masks will be required while picking up food in the cafeteria line.
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All water fountains will be turned off and we will be using water bottle filling stations to provide students with access to water throughout the day. Students should plan to bring a refillable water bottle with them each day.
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Students will be socially distanced to the best of our ability given the space available. Students may eat in additional spaces based on the availability of the school (outside, commons, etc).
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A seating chart will be used during PreK-5 lunch.
Cleaning
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Daily/nightly cleaning and disinfecting of school environments
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Each classroom will have disinfecting wipes, hand sanitizer, and/or a safe disinfectant spray that may be used to clean tables/desks.
Extra-Curricular Activities & Clubs
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School athletics should comply with School Sports Guidance
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All decisions for IESA and IHSA participation will be governed by their respective guidelines
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All non-IHSA extra-curricular activities will be governed by the guidance provided by ISBE and (as appropriate) by the guidance provided above
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Per IDPH, all spectators, regardless of vaccination status, should wear a mask in attendance at indoor sporting events.
Quarantine
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Any staff or student who has tested positive to COVID-19, OR has been in close contact to a person who has tested positive should STAY HOME FROM SCHOOL, inform the school, and wait to hear further instructions from the school and McLean County Health Department (MCHD).
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A close contact is someone who was within 6 feet of a person, who tested COVID positive, for a total of 15 minutes or more over a 24 hour period, starting 2 days before illness onset or until the patient is isolated.
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The length of the quarantine is determined by the McLean County Health Department. Here is an outline of quarantine guidelines.
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Teachers will provide work for the student for the full quarantine period. This can be in the form of hard copies of work picked up from the office or pushed out through google classroom, etc. This is similar to what we did in the past for students who were out ill for a period of time. Staff are not expected to allow students to remote into their live lesson in the classroom.
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If there is an outbreak in a classroom we will work with the building principal to determine the total number of students needing to quarantine. If the number is high enough there may be a need to put all students in the class on remote, during the quarantine period, and have the teacher provide lessons virtually.
RESOURCES
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Guidance for COVID-19 Prevention in Kindergarten -12 Schools- CDC
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Guidance for COVID-19 Prevention in Kindergarten -12 Schools - IDPH
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Sports Safety Guidance - IDPH